Senate Democrats push committee vote on Trump's nominee for deputy attorney general to next week
Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee have pushed the committee vote on Todd Blanche's nomination for deputy attorney general to next week, as panel members are allowed to do. The nomination was on the agenda for today but will now be next Thursday.
The Democrats made the same move on Pam Bondi’s nomination for attorney general and Kash Patel’s nomination for FBI director.
Vance says GOP 'on track' to pass budget reconciliation bill in May or June
The vice president said Republicans are “on track” to pass a budget reconciliation bill, full of Trump’s policy priorities, “in May or in June.” But he acknowledged that is a very aggressive timeline.
Vance’s remarks at CPAC came a day after Trump endorsed the House’s one-bill strategy over the Senate’s rival two-bill proposal. The Senate plans to vote today on its budget resolution to kickstart its reconciliation process, which will allow the GOP to pass its agenda without Democratic votes.
At CPAC, Vance detailed the conversation he had with Trump yesterday about why he thinks “one big beautiful bill” is better than two.
“So the Senate obviously has its own approach, and the president has been very clear that his preference is to put everything in one bill, and part of that is just simple legislative strategy,” Vance said.
“I think the president has learned a lot about how D.C. works. And I actually talked to the president about this yesterday, and he said to me, ‘Look, it’s very rare that you can get two reconciliation bills done in one Congress,’ which is why he thinks we’ve got to do a lot with that one big, beautiful bill, that first reconciliation package that we’re going to get through the House and the Senate,” Vance continued.
“This stuff takes time to put together. If you had a record pace reconciliation bill, we would get this thing done in May or in June. I think we’re on track to do that.”
Vance says ‘unvetted foreign migrants’ are Europe's biggest threat
During his appearance at CPAC, Vance said he believes the “biggest threat” to countries in Europe was “unvetted foreign migrants” and criticized the Biden administration for its handling of immigration and his foreign leadership.
'Not what the Founding Fathers did': Bernie Sanders cautions senators over Trump's 'king' rhetoric
Just before voting no on Linda McMahon’s nomination for secretary of education, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., cautioned fellow Senate HELP committee members against Trump’s plans to dismantle the Department of Education.
“The other day, the president, whether facetiously or not — and I suspect not quite facetiously — talked about being a king,” Sanders said, referring to Trump’s recent Truth Social posts where he proclaimed, "He who saves his Country does not violate any Law,” and likened himself to a "king" after rescinding New York City’s plan for congestion pricing.
“When you’re trying to, quote, unquote, save the country, you don’t have to worry about the law,” Sanders said. “Well, that is not what this country is about. That’s not what the Founding Fathers did in their brilliance. … They understood you don’t give one branch all the power.”
Trump’s posts come as critics have accused him of exceeding the executive authority afforded him by the Constitution and subverting Congress with a series of executive orders.
“I’m here to say: New York hasn’t labored under a king in over 250 years and we sure as hell are not going to start now,” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement yesterday just after Trump’s post. Hochul was swiftly joined by other Democratic governors and lawmakers expressing their concern.
Trump cannot dismantle the Department of Education without Congress' agreement through legislation, which would be unlikely given the slim majority Republicans hold in Congress.
Contradicting Trump, ally Nigel Farage says Putin started the Russia-Ukraine war
One of Donald Trump’s allies isn’t buying his suggestion that Ukraine is to blame for the country’s war with Russia.
Nigel Farage, the populist British politician, is attending the Conservative Political Action Conference today outside Washington, D.C.
When NBC News asked Farage if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy bears responsibility for starting the war with Russia, Farage gave a succinct reply.
“No,” he said. “The invasion was sparked by [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and nobody else.”
Elon Musk to make appearance at CPAC
Elon Musk will make an appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC senior fellow Mercedes Schlapp announced this morning.
"We have a very special guest who's going to be here during the conference. You know, kind of like a tech titan, maybe, responsible for DOGE," Schlapp teased onstage as the audience cheered. "Yes, ladies and gentlemen — 'cause thank God we're back to two genders — Elon Musk will be here on the CPAC stage."
Schlapp did not provide details on what day or time Musk will be speaking.
Linda McMahon's nomination for education secretary advances out of committee
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee has voted to advance Linda McMahon's nomination as the secretary of education in a 12-11 party-line vote.
McMahon's nomination now goes to the full Senate for consideration.
White House K-9 credited with stopping intruder in 2014 dies
A decorated K-9 named Hurricane, who was credited with protecting the White House from an intruder in 2014, has died, the administration announced yesterday.
"Hurricane was a true American hero," the White House said in an Instagram post. "The most decorated K-9 in U.S. history, he bravely defended the White House and spent retirement helping other working dogs through @K9Hurricane. His legacy of courage and loyalty will live on."
In 2014, Hurricane stopped an intruder who scaled a fence to enter the White House lawn, The Associated Press reported. The dog was injured but stopped the intruder, allowing Secret Service agents to arrest him. Then-President Barack Obama was home at the time, according to the AP.
Trump is pushing ‘school choice,’ but some Republicans aren’t on board
Tyler Hansford, superintendent of schools in rural Union, Mississippi, voted for Donald Trump three times.
But Hansford, 36, who leads a district of just under 1,000 students, disagrees with the president on one big issue: using public money to send children to private schools.
“School choice,” as its proponents call it, is a Trump priority that has divided Republicans, drawing support from many conservative governors who see it as an issue of parents’ rights but opposition from small communities concerned about losing much-needed public school funding. Hansford also worries that the private school tuition support proposed in Mississippi wouldn’t help local families who are unable to drive to reach those schools and may not find the special education services they rely on once they get there.
“How is it ‘choice’ when there’s no transportation or special education services provided?” Hansford wrote recently on Facebook about the Mississippi bill. “School choice with no transportation for families without a car is no choice at all.”
CPAC 2025 kicks off with Vance as its opener
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — A long line of Conservative Political Action Conference attendees were in the queue hours before this morning's opening speaker, Vice President JD Vance, was set to appear at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center.
Secret Service agents oversaw Transportation Security Administration agents who conducted uncharacteristically minute inspections, flipping through people’s wallets, passing laptops by bomb-sniffing dogs. The security inspections were notably more in-depth than when Trump has spoken in years past.
Typically, Thursday mornings at CPAC are reserved for C-list speakers and the earliest and most bushy-tailed arrivals, but this year, after Trump stormed into his second term, CPAC is opening with one of its top headliners, Vance, which will only be topped by Trump’s appearance Saturday evening.
At 8 a.m., two hours before Vance was set to appear, attendees were lined up outside and sprinted in when the doors opened. In the hallways, conservative broadcasters set up their booths and crowds accumulated as figures like Britain's Nigel Farage appeared.